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Nanoscience - Properties and Uses of Nanoparticles - Nano silver.
Nanoparticles have a very large surface area for their size or volume.
This gives them different
properties and uses compared to
larger materials which are made from the same substance.
Nanoparticles are used in coatings (see silver
below) and sunscreens.
Future uses include catalysts, computers and building
materials.
Silver in Medicine.
Silver has been used historically for both
jewellery and
medicine.
Silver has been known to have both an
anti-bacterial property
and an anti-fungal property.
Anti-bacterial means that it kills bacteria (or stops them reproducing).
Anti-fungal means that it kills fungi (or stops
them reproducing).
For over 2000 years silver has been
used to purify drinking water
and
today some people use water
filters which contain silver.
Before the development of
antibiotics a thin layer of silver was
applied
to cuts and wounds to prevent infection and speed up the healing
process.
An antibiotic is a substance which
kills bacteria (or stops them reproducing).
In recent years there has been an increase in the number of
bacteria
which are resistant to antibiotics.
This means that they are no longer
killed by antibiotics. Silver is now
being used more to prevent infection.
Nano silver.
Nano
silver is the name given to nanoparticles of
silver.
Only a very thin
coating of nano silver needs to be used.
The very high surface area of this
type of coating gives a big improvement
in the properties of silver which prevent bacterial or fungal
growth.
Nano silver is used in dressings for injuries caused by burns
and wounds caused by surgery.
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